Phys. Rev. Lett. Phys. Rev. A Phys. Rev. B Phys. Rev. C Phys. Rev. D Phys. Rev. E Phys. Rev. ST AB Rev. Mod. Phys. Phys. Rev. (Series I) Phys. Rev. Volume: Page/Article:

Phys. Rev. Lett. 69, 1125–1128 (1992)

[Issue 7 – 17 August 1992 ]

[ Previous article | Next article | Issue 7 contents ]

Magnetism in Cr thin films on Fe(100)

J. Unguris, R. J. Celotta, and D. T. Pierce

National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899

The spin polarization of secondary electrons from a Cr film on Fe(100), measured with scanning electron microscopy with polarization analysis (SEMPA), oscillates as a function of Cr thickness with a period near two atomic layers, consistent with incommensurate spin-density-wave antiferromagnetism in the Cr. The position of a phase slip due to incommensurability varies reversibly by 14 layers over the temperature range of 310 to 550 K. The Cr surface magnetic moment persists well above the Néel temperature of bulk Cr.

©1992 The American Physical Society

URL: http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v69/p1125
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.69.1125
PACS: 75.70.Ak, 75.30.Pd, 75.50.Rr

[ Previous article | Next article | Issue 7 contents ]

References

1. E. Fawcett, Rev. Mod. Phys. 60, 209 (1988).
2. P. Grünberg, R. Schreiber, Y. Pang, M. B. Brodsky and H. Sowers, Phys. Rev. Lett. 57, 2442 (1986).
3. M. N. Baibich, J. M. Broto, A. Fert, F. Nguyen Van Dau, F. Petroff, P. Eitenne, G. Creuzet, A. Friederich and J. Chazelas, Phys. Rev. Lett. 61, 2472 (1988).
4. G. Binasch, P. Grünberg, F. Saurenbach and W. Zinn, Phys. Rev. B 39, 4828 (1989).
5. S. S. P. Parkin, N. More and K. P. Roche, Phys. Rev. Lett. 64, 2304 (1990).
6. J. Unguris, R. J. Celotta and D. T. Pierce, Phys. Rev. Lett. 67, 140 (1991).
7. S. T. Purcell, W. Folkerts, M. T. Johnson, N. W. E. McGee, K. Jager, J. aan de Stegge, W. B. Zeper, W. Hoving and P. Grunberg, Phys. Rev. Lett. 67, 903 (1991).
8. We have corrected for the scale nonlinearity below 2 layers caused by the penumbra arising from the finite source size of the Cr evaporator and the shutter to sample spacing.
9. R. Jungblut, C. Roth, F. U. Hillebrecht and E. Kisker, J. Appl. Phys. 70, 5923 (1991) [ INSPEC].
10. During preparation of this manuscript, we were informed that antiferromagnetic ordering in Cr/Fe(100) has also been observed at - 30 to - 60 °C with spin-polarized electron-energy-loss spectroscopy; T. G. Walker, A. W. Pang, H. Hopster and S. F. Alvarado, preceding Letter, Phys. Rev. Lett. 69, 1121 (1992).
11. D. Stoeffler and F. Gautier, Prog. Theor. Phys. Suppl. 101, 139 (1990); P. M. Levy, K. Ounadjela, S. Zhang, Y. Wang, C. B. Sommers and A. Fert, J. Appl. Phys. 67, 5914 (1990) [ SPIN][ INSPEC]; H. Hasegawa, Phys. Rev. B 42, 2368 (1990).
12. S. A. Werner, A. Arrott and H. Kendrick, Phys. Rev. 155, 528 (1967).
13. K. Schwartzman, E. J. Hartford and J. L. Fry, J. Appl. Phys. 67, 4552 (1990) [ SPIN][ INSPEC].

[ Previous article | Next article | Issue 7 contents ]